Today, a telecommunications network can support multiple types of services, such as voice, data, and video, using optical network technology. A widely adopted optical network technology is Synchronous Optical Network/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (“SONET/SDH”) technology, which is based on standards defined by International and North American standards bodies.
SONET/SDH networks require a significant amount of effort for operations, administration, maintenance, and provisioning (“OAM&P”) due to the complexity and amount of traffic that is carried by these networks. Typically, operators of SONET/SDH networks employ operations support systems (“OSS”) that are based on one or more OAM&P protocols. Some common OAM&P protocols include the Telecommunications Management Network (“TMN”) protocol, Transaction Language 1 (“TL1”), the Common Management Information Protocol (“CMIP”), and the Simple Network Management Protocol (“SNMP”). These protocols provide a variety of services including performance monitoring services, fault management services, and remote management services.
However, an OSS can be difficult to implement in a telecommunications network, especially a network that supports multiple services or uses multiple types of equipment. Typically, an OSS uses agents that monitor and manage each piece of equipment. The agents are generally software that is installed in the managed equipment. An agent monitors the equipment, receives network management messages, notifies the OSS of any faults, and configures the equipment in response to commands from the OSS. In order to perform these functions, an agent creates a set of managed objects within a management information base (“MIB”) that model the resources and components of the managed equipment. Due to the wide variety of types of equipment and manufacturers, the software for agents of an OSS is difficult to write, certify, and maintain.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an OSS or network management system that is easy to implement within a multi-service network. In addition, it would be desirable to provide an agent that is easy to implement in a wide variety of types of equipment.